Orbitz 2011 Annual Report Download - page 8

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8
Operations and Technology
Systems Infrastructure and Web and Database Servers
We use SAVVIS co-location services in the United States to host our systems infrastructure and web and database
servers for Orbitz, CheapTickets, The Away Network, Orbitz for Business and ebookers. The majority of our hardware and
other equipment is located at the SAVVIS facility. SAVVIS provides data center management services as well as emergency
hands-on support. In addition, we have our own dedicated staff on-site at the facility. If SAVVIS was unable, for any reason, to
support our primary web hosting facility, we have a secondary facility through Verizon Business, which is also located in the
United States.
We use Global Switch services in the United Kingdom to host our systems infrastructure and web and database servers
for ebookers legacy systems and for HotelClub. The arrangement with Global Switch is similar to the arrangement described
above with SAVVIS.
Systems Platform
Our systems platform enables us to deconstruct the segment feeds from our GDS partners for air flight searches and then
reassemble these segments for cost-effective and flexible multi-leg itineraries. We also have the ability to connect to and book
air travel directly on certain airlines' internal reservation systems through our supplier link technology. Our easy-to-use Matrix
display allows customers to simultaneously view these various travel options so that they can select the price and supplier that
best meet their travel needs. In addition, our vacation packaging technology enables travelers to view multiple combinations of
airlines, hotels and other travel products and allows them to assemble a customized vacation package that is generally less
expensive than booking each travel product separately.
We have technology operations teams dedicated to ensuring that our websites operate efficiently. These teams monitor
our websites as well as the performance and availability of our third party service providers and coordinate major releases of
new functionality on our websites. We have product development teams focused on creating new, and improving existing,
website functionality. These teams also developed and implemented our global technology platform that supports our global
consumer brands; in February 2012, we completed our global technology platform migration, a multi-year initiative to bring all
of our consumer brands onto a common technology platform.
Customer Support
Our customer support efforts include OrbitzTLC, a proactive customer care service for our travelers. Our OrbitzTLC
team is based in Chicago, Illinois, and monitors Federal Aviation Administration, National Weather Service and other data to
send customers real-time updates on information that may affect their travel plans. Our customer support platform also includes
customer self service, chat, email and call center services to provide our customers with multiple options to enhance the travel
experience. We utilize intelligent voice routing and intelligent call management technology to connect customers with the
appropriate agent who can best assist them with their particular needs. We utilize third party vendors domestically and
internationally to manage these call centers and customer service centers.
Fraud Prevention System
We have an internally-developed fraud prevention system that we believe enables us to detect fraudulent bookings
efficiently. The system automates many functions and prioritizes suspicious transactions for review by fraud analysts within our
fraud prevention team.
Marketing
We utilize a combination of online and traditional offline marketing. Our sales and marketing efforts primarily focus on
increasing brand awareness and driving visitors to our websites. Our long-term success will depend on our ability to continue to
increase the overall number of booked transactions in a cost-effective manner.
We use various forms of online marketing to drive traffic to our websites including search engine marketing (“SEM”),
travel research websites, meta-search travel websites, display advertising, affiliate programs and email marketing. We continue
to pursue strategies to improve our online marketing efficiency. These strategies include increasing the amount of traffic
coming to our websites through search engine optimization (“SEO”) and customer relationship management (“CRM”) and
improving the efficiency of our SEM and travel research spending. We also use traditional broadcast advertising to focus on